CNY Healing Arts Offers Wellness and Hope

Below is an article that was written by Nancy Haus for “in good Health” CNY’s Healthcare Newspaper.

When you open the door to CNY Healing Arts at 191 Intrepid Lane in Syracuse, it’s like entering a world of Shangri-La, abundantly filled with serenity and calm. Even the delicate aroma as you sit in the relaxed waiting area, whispers quietly of the tranquility that fills Syracuse’s newest fertility and wellness center for women.

Acupuncturist Donald Clarke, who practices Traditional Chinese Medicine, says that “50 percent of our clients come to us for fertility issues; the remaining 50 percent come to treat other female health problems, including personal issues and chronic pain.”

The problems Clarke alludes to, includes a wide range of pain categories, such as musculo-skeletal pain, pain caused by herniated disks, fibromyalgia, restless leg syndrome, pain such as neuralgia and systemic pain, resulting from cancer surgery or radiation treatments, even pain from sinus infection.

Patients typically range in age fromm 25-40, but overall patient base includes women from the age of 16 to 87, according to Clarke.

CNY Healing Arts opened in July 2007. “CNY Healing Arts provides an educational and patient-empowering experience to allow one to become an active participant in one’s own health care,” he says.

“Patients need to better understand their health options in order to make critical medical decisions. We must also have empathy for our patients and understand the difficulties, including physical, emotional, social and financial, and only in this way can we provide patient empowering health care. Our mission here at CNY Healing Arts is to provide comprehensive services in a compassionate, honest and friendly environment.”

A well-rounded menu of services is offered at CNY Healing Arts, including nutrition education, massage, acupuncture, fitness classes (including pilates, yoga, and belly dancing), and support groups which are a great help to couples experiencing the pain and discouragement that accompanies infertility issues. Workshops, seminars and peer support groups like “The Circle of Hope” round out the services offered at CNY Healing Arts. Two acupuncturists and two licensed massage therapists are available to provide services to patients.

The yoga studio is a large, inviting room with eco-friendly and “green,” bamboo floors.

Bamboo is considered to be exceptionally durable, and moisture and insect resistant, says Clarke. “Here, all levels of students learn to balance their body’s energy, stretch muscles to increase their range of motion, and calm their mind,” he says.

Yoga workouts also enable students a sufficiently extensive workout suitable for promoting weight loss. Certified yoga instructor, Susan Hurburt, works with classes ranging from 2 to 15 students.

Karen Loeffer teaches pilates, a more passive form of physical fitness, with a philosophical and theoretical foundation. Pilates focuses on the core postural muscles which help keep the body balanced and which are essential to providing support for the spine. In particular, pilates exercises teach awareness of breath, and alignment of the spine, and aim to strengthen thedeep torso muscles.

A few, precise movements emphasize control and form by strengthening, stretching, and stabilizing key muscles.

One interpretation of pilates principles - centering, concentration, control, precision, breathing, and flowing movement - is similar to yoga.

Pilates sessions claim to help increase strength and flexibility, lengthen the body and align the spine. The central element of pilates is to create a fusion of mind and body, so that without thinking about it the body will move with economy, grace, and balance; using one’s body to the greatest advantage, making the most of its strengths, counteracting its weaknesses, and correcting its imbalances. The goal is to produce an attention-free union of mind and body.

Another relaxing component of CNY Healing Arts is the sauna, steam room, and rain shower. These new, ultra-clean, and beautiful facilities provide a therapeutic and calming end to any of the workout or healing sessions.

My visit to CNY Healing Arts enabled me to experience a traditional Chinese treatment, called cupping. This form of Chinese medicine realigns the muscle fibers, and Clarke elected to use this treatment to help provide some relief for my lower back pain.

Because of the complexity of my personal pain issues, a number of treatments will be necessary. But I can tell you the treatment was absolutely pain-free. The acupuncture part of the treatment was also gentle and I did not feel any pain whatsoever. The main feeling I did experience was relaxation and calm, followed by a soothing session in the sauna, and a relaxing conclusion in the rain shower which can only be described as exquisite.

CNY Healing Arts’ philosophy is based on treating the cause of the problem so that patients can achieve the relief they’re seeking in shorter time periods than traditional medicine.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 671-5755 or visit the CNY Healing Arts website.